


Metempsychosis

by Elena_Parker



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, BAMF Haruno Sakura, Big Sister Figure Touka-Sakura, Dai-nana-han | Team 7 as Family (Naruto), Fix-It, Gen, Hashirama and Tobirama are so proud of Touka-sakura (wipes tears), Hatake Kakashi is Bad at Feelings, Hatake Kakashi is a Troll, He lets Sakura fuss over him, Kaka sasu and Naru are traumatized brats, Let Big sis Saku kiss away your boo boos, No one can convince me otherwise, Other additional tags to be added later, Rebirth, Sasuke is like a sassy Tobirama, Senju Touka reborn as Haruno Sakura, She is doing the Village good, She wont let anyone trample on the dreams of her dear cousins, Touka-Sakura has a Brother Complex, Touka-Sakura is low key terrifying, Touka-Sakura teaches Naru and Sasu how to be a badass duo, Troubleshooter Touka-Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto is sunshine incarnate, Why fear when Sakura is here, Women Being Awesome, but its okay
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:39:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25750717
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elena_Parker/pseuds/Elena_Parker
Summary: She’d be the Senju Tōka to their  Hashirama and Tobirama. Just like the good old times.“....Team Seven- Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke.”It was Fate, really.AU/Reincarnation/Fix-it Fic:- In which Senju Tōka is reborn as Haruno Sakura, fusses over her team, metaphorically adopts pitifully traumatized brats, overhauls Konoha's shitty government and rebuilds it- all the while trying to deal with international crises and terrorist organizations hell bent on conquering the world via the moon.
Relationships: Dai-nana-han | Team Seven & Konoha 12, Haruno Sakura & Hatake Kakashi & Uchiha Sasuke & Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura & Hatake Kakashi's Ninken, Senju Hashirama & Senju Tobirama & Senju Touka & Uchiha Izuna & Uchiha Madara & Uzumaki Mito
Comments: 8
Kudos: 246





	Metempsychosis

_Uzumaki Naruto is like the sun.’_ Sakura thought as she eyed the boy sitting beside her in interest. 

It had nothing to do with his chakra - _which was warm and bright and was like a beacon for any decent sensor as compared to other chakra signatures_ \- nor did it have anything to do with his blinding smiles and bright personality. 

( _“Too much like Hashirama.”_ Her Inner-Tōka grumbled, and she wholeheartedly agreed with her.)

She compared the Uzumaki child sitting beside her to the sun because of the way he unknowingly attracted people to himself. There was just something about him - _was it his charishma? His personality? Or his happy-go-lucky attitude?_ \- that made people unintentionally seek him out in a crowd. 

There was nothing interesting about him; there were no hint of him having any intriguing background like that of the protagonists of those stupid novels that Mito once loved to read - _and even if Naruto had a past like that then either it was being hidden on purpose or the blonde was a fantastical actor who could conceal the truth from even_ **_her_ ** . Uzumaki Naruto was an orphan , a dead last, a loser who just talked big but didn’t have any skills to back up his boasts; and _yet_ , for some reason people’s eyes always followed him unconsciously. Naruto didn’t even know the influence he had on his surroundings, how he slowly changed the perspective of his fellow classmates and teacher. In the eyes of most of his classmates, he went from ‘a loudmouth’ to ‘an interesting loudmouth’. Progress, really.

As the years passed, more and more people around them changed their perspective of Naruto as they interacted with him. Their Chunin Sensei Umino Iruka pushed past his bias - _though what had it stemmed from, she still had no clue about it_ \- and began seeing Naruto as a younger sibling that he never had. It was intriguing to see how the timid Hyuuga heiress strived to be better after watching Naruto try, and fail countless times - _but even when he was frustrated with his failures, he_ **_never_ ** _quit_ ; how Shikamaru, Choji and Kiba came to regard Naruto as a funny guy and included him in their ‘loser gang’, as jokingly dubbed by Kiba; how even Sasuke went from passively neutral to aggressive spitfire in mere moments whenever he buts heads with Naruto. 

Over the years Sakura had come to the conclusion that Uzumaki Naruto really brought out the best and the worst in people - _ranging from his fellow teacher and classmates to the mindless civilians who hated him for no reason_. It was terrifying how much influence a seemingly ordinary boy could gather. Really, if this child actually learned to wield his charishma like a weapon and grasped emotional manipulation, then there’s no doubt he can even conquer the world if he wanted to. She didn’t know whether to be relieved or to despair over the fact that Naruto was stupid enough to not have realised it till now. What a waste of potential, really.

Uchiha Sasuke, on the other hand, was like the moon. He was cold, calm and almost dismissive of anyone who wasn’t worth his time. He was smart, level headed, and a genius of his own right. 

For a child, his skills weren’t half bad. He was arrogant in a way only Uchihas could be, confident of his skills and full of that Uchiha Pride that had once upon a time caused those stuck-up red eyed demons to fall even harder when their pride was bruised. He was like the ghost of her past, looking too much like Uchiha Izuna for her liking, and even behaved like a typical Uchiha - _a traumatized one at that_. While he was usually calm and collected, he was also quick to temper, especially when Naruto was involved. His moods were as inconsistent as the shapes of the moon -sometimes waxing and sometimes waning. He was like an unholy combination of Madara and Izuna-

…..and yet, there were days when he did nothing but peacefully gaze out of the classroom’s window. In those moments, she could see a glimpse of Tobirama in his calm visage. Those moments never lasted long, and she could count with one hand the number of times Sasuke actually let down his guard around them. 

The two of them were so different from each other, always acting like they were enemies on a narrow road. In the years she spent observing them in the Ninja Academy, she - _as well as anyone with well functioning eyes_ \- could see that the two of them could never stand each other’s presence. They always opposed the other, like the sun and the moon. Like the light and the shadows.

Like Izuna and Tobirama.

Like Hashirama and Madara.

-And yet, she _knew_ that they could be so much more than that. They could be more than just petty enemies. How wonderful would it be if they coils just look past their biased view of each other and truly _see_ the other. If they could just solve their differences, they would surely be a force to be reckoned with. They’d be nigh unstoppable. They’d be brothers (in all but blood).

_Just like her Hashi and Tobi._

And she’d be there just a step behind them, watching their backs; pulling them out of whatever troubles they’d land themselves in . She’d be the Senju Tōka to their Hashirama and Tobirama. Just like the good old times.

“....Team Seven- Uzumaki Naruto, Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke.”

It was Fate, really.

* * *

Their first meeting with their Jonin sensei could’ve gone better. A _lot_ better, actually. Being disliked by their Jonin Sensei on their very first meeting was honestly upsetting. 

Their Jonin Instructor Hatake Kakashi - _whom she recognized from the old Bingo Books she had swiped from the restricted section of the Academy Library after pestering Iruka-Sensei for_ **_weeks_ **\- seemed to not like having his already Hatake silver hair marred with the chalk powder residue that was the result of letting a duster fall over his head. To be fair, he could’ve easily dodged that simple prank. It was his fault to deliberately let himself fall victim to Naruto’s amateur prank, and still felt the need to convey his dislike of his new students. How petty. 

The greeting and introduction that followed next was at least better than their first disastrous meeting, although it too could’ve been even better if their Sensei had been more forthcoming about himself. Oh well, at least she got a better insight on her two teammates. 

Turns out, Naruto was a huge ramen addict - _surprise, surprise_ \- and could rant about ramen and it’s holiness for _hours_. It was just like Hashirama and his obsession with plants all over again, except this time she did not have Tobi to commiserate their suffering. 

On the other hand, Sasuke was still a traumatized brat; but more specifically, he was a traumatized child with ambitions of vengeance and murder.

So, she had a sunshine incarnate and a literal vengeful murder-child for her teammates. What the hell, she didn’t want to be saddled with another Hashirama and Madara duo all over again! 

_Goddammit! Give her cute little Hashi and Tobi back to her!_

“-and what about you, Pinky?” The Jonin’s voice snapped her out of her trance. 

Ah, looks like it’s her turn to introduce herself. About damn time. 

“My name is-” _Senju Tōka_ “Haruno Sakura. I like-” _my cousin brothers_ “ -my family, the colour pink, green tea, wagashi and the trees around Konoha. My hobbies are reading books, people watching and training. I dislike needless conflicts, traitors and psychopaths. My dream for the future is-” She paused. What was her dream again?

She glanced at the two boys sitting on her either side, and then looked to the side beyond the terrace of the Academy, and into the bustling Village as it stretched into distance. just the sight of the Village that her dear cousins created together warmed her heart. They had lived for their dreams, and they died for their ideals, leaving behind this Village as a memento for the future generations. The little seed of hope they had planted became a large, bustling tree today, bearing fruits and flowers; and yet, even the majestic tree isn’t truly alright, for it is rotting from deep within. 

Hashirama had wanted to create a safe haven for the children, while Tobirama had wanted to bring peace to the shinobi world. 

And Tōka? 

The only thing she had ever wanted was to make their dreams come true.

She would protect this tree that her cousins had left behind and entrusted to the future. She would not let the rot decay this beloved jewel of her loved ones. She would tear apart the rotting and decaying parts of the giant tree that is Konohagakure-no-Sato, and protect the Will of Fire that her Tobi believed in so much. 

She would take their dreams further and would protect Konohagakure at all costs, even if she had to protect it from itself.

_She would not let her rebirth go to waste._

“My dream is to see Konoha thrive one day in it’s _true_ glory.”

“.........I see.” 

* * *

Just as their Jonin Sensei had instructed them to, the next day the three of them arrived at the Training Ground Seven at 5 A.M. sharp for the survival test. They spent the next three hours waiting for their Sensei, who himself was late for his self-assigned test. She sensed his chakra signature as he skulked around the perimeters of the training ground, and then stayed on another section of the training ground. She pondered if she should go find him herself and burst his bubble of thinking of them - _her especially_ \- as an ignorant genin, but then whimsically decided not to do that. 

Let that man-child underestimate her all he wants. It’d be interesting to see if he could actually figure her out or not. Besides, his lateness could work as an exercise in patience for her two teammates, who Kami knows desperately need it. Honestly, children these days are so restless.

By the time Kakashi Hatake decided to grace them with his presence, Sasuke and Naruto were beyond annoyed, and honestly contemplated murder. The outlandish excuse for his lateness frustrated them even more. It sounded to them as if their Jonin instructor wasn’t taking them seriously. It was honestly quite amusing to watch. 

“Alright, let’s get on with your test.” The Jonin said as he pulled out two bells from the pocket of his flak jacket, and Sakura couldn’t help but gape in disbelief.

The bell test? Seriously? Wasn’t it supposed to be a joke test Hashi, Tobi and her had come up with during their drinking spree? There were people who actually took it seriously? 

“Your assignment is quite simple. You just have to take these bells from me. That’s all there is to it. If you can’t get it by noon, then you’ll go without lunch.”

_‘You’ve got to be kidding me!’_

Hashi and Tobi must be laughing at her from the Pure Lands at her atrocious luck. To think that there’d be people who’d actually take this crackish test seriously! Oh the utter ignominy! 

She eyed the two bells and reminisced about the past as Kakashi further explained the test and answered their questions.

If anyone knew that the bells used for the original test had been something Hashirama had swiped from Mito’s favorite hairpin when they had been high on alcohol - _which resulted in them waking up with a huge hangover the next morning and cowering from Mito’s wrath as she pummelled them into the ground for_ **_daring_ ** _to even_ **_touch_ ** _her precious family heirloom_ , then the prestige of the founders of Konoha would go down in drain. 

Tch, to think her luck would be so atrocious to actually suffer from the test she and her cousins had come up on a drunken whim to terrorise Hashi’s precocious genin…. Really, it is true that what goes around, comes around. 

By the time she stopped reminiscing and focused on the present situation she found that Naruto couldn’t resist the Jonin’s mocking comments and actually dared to attack him, to which the Jonin reacted by easily countering his pathetic attempt at attack.

“Don’t be in a hurry. I didn’t say start yet.” The Jonin said as he pointed the kunai at Naruto’s head, who stood frozen in terror at the seemingly nonchalant way the Jonin had disarmed him easily. The Hatake then cocked his head to the side and spoke, “But, you did come at me with the intent to kill. Hm, how should I say this? …..I am starting to like you guys.”

“Get ready…...and- Start!”

She body-flickered away and appeared on a tree across the clearing, with her chakra suppressed tightly to not give away her location. She weaved a genjutsu around her with minimal chakra usage to camouflage herself better among the foliage. While she and Sasuke were quick to hide and mask their presence to bide time for any semblance of a plan, Naruto decided to confront their Jonin Sensei head on. 

Despairing over the blonde’s lack of common sense - _she’s definitely going to have_ **_words_ ** _with him after this test_ \- she quietly sorted out her thoughts as she watched the blonde fight one-on-one with Kakashi - _as if it could even be called a fight with Kakashi one-handedly pummelling Naruto into the ground_.

The bell test was primarily used to test teamwork. Obviously, that means that if they wanted to pass this test, then they’d have to work together. She thought of her teammates- the simpleton, obnoxious blonde and the stuck up Uchiha- and mentally lit a candle for herself. 

…….They’re going to fail this test spectacularly, aren’t they?

She looked over the clearing, just in time to see Naruto fall for a classic booby trap with a bell as a bait, which ended with his hanging upside down a tree with a rope. She couldn’t help but face- palm. Damn it Naruto…. Even Hashi hadn’t been that hopeless in his childhood, and _that’s_ saying something considering Hashirama was the epitome of naivety. 

“A ninja must see through deception.” Kakashi lectured Naruto as he grabbed the bell he had dropped around as the bait, and put it back in his pocket.

“Well then, who’s next?” He mused as he nonchalantly looked around the clearing, and then he vanished with a poof of smoke.

She immediately body-flickered away from the clearing, immediately knowing his comment for what it actually was. A threat. She kept her guard up and constantly scanned her surroundings with chakra, but either Kakashi wasn’t present in her range - _which was impossible considering her chakra sensing range comprised almost all of the Training Ground Seven_ \- or the Jonin knew how to suppress his chakra _just so_ to hide from a chakra sensor. The latter seemed to be true, since she suddenly found herself coming face to face with the Jonin, who didn’t even give her the time to react to his presence and tried to knock her out with a C-ranked Genjutsu.

The genjutsu didn’t even settle over her five senses before she broke it with ease. “Demonic illusion: Hell viewing technique” was a pretty low class genjutsu, but still powerful enough to trump genins and even some unprepared chunins. To think that the Jonin would actually test _her_ with Genjutsu….. Really, what were the odds? Did he think she was too weak willed or something? Or was he looking down on her as a kunoichi? He didn’t even stay around to watch if she actually gets affected by the genjutsu, or how long she would last under the illusion. How disappointing.

After confirming that the Jonin really wasn’t anywhere in her vicinity, she decided to look for her two teammates and share with them the true purpose of this test. If they could actually decide to be the bigger person and set aside their differences for a few minutes, then maybe they could actually impress their Jonin sensei enough to pass this test. They couldn’t be so childish as to sabotage their own test because of their petty rivalry, right?

.

.

.

A few minutes later, Sakura stood before her teammates as they once again butted heads, and realised that she had given the two of them too much credit. The overconfident Uchiha thought of his teammates as a burden, who would only slow him down in this test; while Naruto thought that he had to prove himself to Kakashi and make him acknowledge the blonde. The two were too focused on themselves to see the big picture, and didn’t believe her when she explained that they needed to work together to pass this test. After that, it only took a snide comment or two from Sasuke to make Naruto blow his fuse, which resulted in their recent argument.

Sakura rubbed her temple as she tried to ease the building headache, that seemed to worsen as the argument escalated even further. These _children_ not only treated her explanation as farce but also dared to dismiss her. How rude. Not even _Tobirama_ had dared to be disparaging towards her, knowing that doing so would end up with him being pummelled to the ground and crawling in the mud for a week (courtesy of a high level genjutsu that made the victim think of themselves as a literal pig). These brats sure had some guts, huh.

Taking in a deep breath, she narrowed her green eyes at their bickering form, and then grabbed them harshly by the ear. The two of them squawked, the Uchiha especially glared at her to show how miffed he was at this slight - _which was so adorable since he looked more like a disgruntled cat to her_ \- and then whined in protest.

“Sakura-chan-” 

“How dare you-”

She interrupted their complains with a firm tug on their ears and spoke, “I need you to stop being utter _brats-”_ the two of them glared at her simultaneously for that snub, which she ignored with practiced ease and kept dragging them with her by their ears “-and actually _use_ your brains for now. Why do you think Kakashi-sensei used two bells for the test?”

“Uh, because he’s an asshole?” Naruto offered his two cents as he finally stopped trying to rescue his ear from Sakura’s hold, deeming it a lost cause. Good for him. The Uchiha, however, still struggled against her hold. Oh well, he’ll learn in due time.

“No.” She answered while dragging them to the place where she sensed Kakashi’s chakra signature. “He used two bells and said that he’d pass only two of us. But that doesn’t make sense, since every genin squad has three members, not two. He can’t pass only two members and send one back to the Academy, it’s against the protocol. He either has to pass all three of us or fail all of us.” _‘Or take only one of them as an apprentice.’_ she added mentally as she concisely pointed out to make the facts clear for them.“So, why would he use two bells?”

Realisation dawned on Sasuke, who momentarily stopped struggling against her hold and said, “He’s pitting us against each other on purpose.”

“That’s correct.” Sakura nodded. “Two bells, three genin. It’s obviously a ruse to make us compete against each other so that there’s no chance of us realising the true meaning of this test. Can’t you see that we’ve been playing into his hands since the beginning?”

“Okay, so Kakashi-sensei tricked us into fighting for the bells. But that still doesn’t explain how we can pass this test, dattebayo!”

“Idiot, isn’t it obvious? We need to do the opposite of infighting, and that is-”

“-Teamwork.” She finished his statement. “We need to work together if we even want a chance at grabbing those bells.” She spared them a look and said, “Besides, did you actually think you could come victorious against _a Jonin_ ?” Seeing the sheepish way the two of them turned their gazes away from her, she couldn’t help but let out an exasperated sigh. “Are you serious? You actually thought you stood a chance against a full-fledged Jonin?” She glanced at them sardonically and teased them, “You and what army, huh?”  
Sasuke smacked her hand that was holding his ear, and she released her hold now that they had actually heard her explanation and were at least willing to form a truce. For now. “Shut up, nerd.” He glared at her, to which she just raised a brow at him in reply, unimpressed by his smart-ass comment.

“Ow....” Naruto rubbed his now free ear, which had turned red from Sakura’s grip, and muttered, “Sakura-chan, how is your grip so strong?!”

Sakura didn’t deign him with a reply, but instead glanced at the two of them with raised brows. She then held out her fist before them as an offer, and asked-

“So, truce?”

The two of them contemplated and eyed each other warily. Before they could come to a conclusion, the Universe decided to mock her for her efforts, for at that moment the alarm their Jonin-Sensei had set up at the beginning of the test rang around the Training grounds, signalling the end of the test.

Sakura’s hand fell by her side as she dumbfoundedly contemplated her misfortune. Hashirama must’ve rubbed her with his stupid luck in her previous life, huh, because things like this just don’t happen unless you’re extremely unlucky, or you’re Hashirama. At least she was taking it in stride. In comparison, her fellow teammates seemed to be suffering from brain malfunction, for they stared at the empty air with a wide-eyed horrified look, standing frozen as if someone had glued their feet on the ground.

It’s over. They’re going back to the academy, weren’t they?

Oh, if Hashi and Tobi ever came to know of this, they would _never_ let her live this down. 

(There are worse ways of dying of embarrassment, and failing a dumb test that you had jokingly created in your previous life when you were high on alcohol happened to be one of them.)

* * *

…...They passed. All it took was her being tied to a log while her two male teammates defied their Jonin-Sensei by feeding her the lunch which Kakashi had explicitly told them to ‘not feed her’, and showed that they _could_ agree on something for once. (Another logical ruse. Seriously, what was with their Jonin-Sensei and logical ruses?!) She didn’t know if she should be offended or gratified that they pitied her enough to agree to share their lunch with her. Oh well, all’s well that ends well, right? 

They were now one step closer to their dreams.

But she still didn’t understand one thing- why by the Sage’s name did she have to be the one to be tied on the wooden log?! 

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. My headcanon is that Tōka died sometime after the founding of Konoha, but before Madara went batshit crazy  
> i.e. controlled the Kyuubi to attack Konoha. 
> 
> 2\. According to Narutopedia, Senju Tōka was renowned throughout the world for her prowess with genjutsu. 
> 
> 3\. Tōka!Sakura was tied to the log because Kakashi is a petty man-child who was miffed about the fact that his scheme  
> fell through because of her. If none of them could have figured out the point of the bell test by the time the alarm rang, then he’d have enjoyed tying the brats to the log. But she told them the purpose of this test and even managed to make them almost agree to work together, which cut off his fun. That’s why “to push the tradition forward” (or so he convinced himself, lol) he tied her to the log, because after all, there had never been any Team Seven’s bell test that _hadn’t_ ended with at least one genin tied to the log. See? _Someone’s_ gotta keep up with the age-old tradition, right?  
> (In reality he just wanted to mess around with these cute li’l genins. Lol.)


End file.
